Part 7 (2/2)
The convertible was now b.u.mping up and down unmercifully. George turned around in her seat to glare at the horn-blowing driver. ”Don't give him an inch!” she told Nancy.
”Wouldn't do him any good if I did. His truck's too big to pa.s.s, and I'm certainly not going into a ditch to let him get by! He'll have to wait until we reach the end of this detour!”
”What's his big hurry, anyhow?” George grumbled. ”Probably just trying to make us nervous.”
”Well, he's certainly succeeding so far as I'm concerned,” Bess said.
Just then the girls came within sight of a wooden bridge-the end of the torturous road.
”Thank goodness!” Bess cried.
With the truck still bearing down on the convertible, Nancy drove onto the bridge.
”It doesn't look very safe,” Bess remarked uneasily. ”No wonder they're building a new bridge.”
”It doesn't sound safe, either!” George cried out as the loose planks creaked alarmingly under the weight of the car. ”If that truck tries to pa.s.s us, we'll all crash through!”
But at that moment the girls heard the heavy truck clatter onto the wooden planks. ”He's crazy!” George exclaimed. ”This bridge will never hold us both!”
The words were barely out of her mouth when there came a cracking, splintering sound.
”Nancy!” Bess shrieked. ”Look out!”
CHAPTER VI.
Nancy's Strategy
AT BESS'S warning, Nancy glanced at the rear-view mirror and saw that the driver of the heavy truck did indeed intend to pa.s.s her! There was only one way for her to avert an accident: take her car full speed ahead.
”Here goes!” she cried out, and the convertible shot forward.
The three girls held their breaths, praying that the bridge would be strong enough to hold both vehicles. The old bridge creaked and groaned but held up despite a plank cracked by the truck.
Nancy had barely reached the far end when the truck sped past her at an alarming rate. It grazed her car and tore off part of the bridge railing. The driver rushed on pell-mell.
”That fellow's a madman!” George exclaimed angrily. ”He should be arrested for reckless driving!”
”I wish I had taken his license number so we could report him to the police!” Bess added.
Nancy sighed. ”At this point I'm just glad my car doesn't have to go into the repair shop again! I have a lot of work to do trying to solve the mystery of the Raybolt fire.”
As the girls drove on toward Sandy Creek, they finally forgot their indignation. When they reached the town, Nancy asked a policeman for directions. Following these, she arrived at a section near the river where small houses were crowded together. Bess and George carefully scanned the weather-worn cottages, searching for one with the name ”Riverwood.”
Bess caught sight of it first. ”I see Honey out front!” she said eagerly. ”Look! Isn't she sweet?”
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